


Neon Light

by Somekindofpoet



Category: Elyza Lex - Fandom, clexa - Fandom, queer the walking dead
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-16
Updated: 2017-12-16
Packaged: 2019-02-15 16:29:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13035033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Somekindofpoet/pseuds/Somekindofpoet
Summary: Elyza owns a CBGB style bar, Alicia is a bored Berkley student. What’s there not to love?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I’m so extra I’m writing an AU of an AU this wonderful fandom made up after the worst thing to air on television.

The bottom pattern of Chuck Taylor's crossed and resting on the table were the first thing Elyza saw of her. The next were the deliciously long legs, then the thin waist, her toned arms and then slender fingers combing through auburn hair. The last thing she noticed was the look of pure apathy settled across her striking features. Elyza wondered briefly if it was carefully practiced, or actually sincere. It didn't matter.

She had no time to wonder who this incredibly attractive girl was. Even if she was currently sitting with her feet propped up on her favorite table. In her favorite bar. In HER bar. She maneuvered her own features to reflect the girls look of disinterest, and slowly sauntered toward the table. When she approached, the girl lifted her eyes briefly, then back down to her phone. Elyzas lip curled in irritation and she roughly swept the girl's feet from the table top, causing her to slam her shoes to the ground and lean forward. Before the stranger had a chance to even open her mouth in protest, Elyza straightened up.

"Oi, princess. No fuckin shoes on my tables. No matter how pretty the person attached to them." Elyza half smirked but stood her ground, daring the girl to challenge her. 

Cigarette smoke hung heavily in the air, reflecting purple and red from the neon that lit the bar. The bar smelled of sweat and smoke and cheap beer. The band in the background was growling out a particularly rough cover of Iggy and the Stooges I Wanna Be Your Dog. 

The girl glaring up at Elyza was completely out of place here, dressed in black skinny jeans and a light blue cut off shirt. She wondered briefly why the hell the girl was here, before the low growl of her voice caught her attention. 

"If that is how you go about picking up girls, I'll assume you're a virgin." 

For half a second Elyza was frozen, shocked at the girls retort, sarcasm dripping from her full lips. She recovered quickly and leaned over the table until she was inches away from the girls face.

"If I was picking you up doll, your panties would already be around your ankles." The girl scoffed and rolled her eyes, leaning back into her chair with a huff. Elyza smirked and leaned back, pulling the rag from her back pocket to wipe down the table. Before she could walk away she slipped one more jibe at the girl.

"This is a respectable business baby. Buy a beer and keep your shoes off my damn table." As the last words fell from her mouth she spun on her heel and began to walk away. Before she even made it a foot from the now smoldering stranger, a body was launched in front of her, along with flying fists and soon after a smashed beer bottle. Elyza stopped in her tracks and cringed as the bar fight broke out in front of her. Against her better judgement she glanced over her shoulder to see the girl putting her feet back onto the table, with one eyebrow raised and a self satisfied smirk on her face. 

Instead of reacting Elyza smiled and shrugged, then slipped through the fight to the back of the bar. The bartender Lindsey rolled her eyes as Elyza popped the register, dropped two ones into it and snagged a beer from beneath the counter. 

"Isn't that like, basically paying yourself?" Lindsey asked with an eyebrow raised.

Elyza shrugged, "Consider it your wages, your girlfriends shitty band is driving out the customers. Oh, give that girl free drinks for the night. I like her." She said gesturing toward the broody brunette with her feet back up on the table.

Lindsey laughed and nodded sarcastically to the packed bar. Elyza knew her bar had a certain draw to it, there were very few like it. She had read scathing reviews from suburban mothers who called Fear Grounders a "cesspool of punk filth, full of thugs and juveniles". She grinned at the memory, proud of her very own little CBGB. 

She had initially bought the bar to help burn her extra time between college classes, but it had turned into something bigger than she had even hoped. She had created a space where she felt at home, like less of a menace to society. Little did she know there were hundreds, if not thousands of people just like her, waiting to find a place to call home as well. Thus, Fear Grounders was born, right smack in the middle of upperclass wealth in Berkley California. While the locals weren't exactly thrilled about the bar, punks from Oakland would slink up into the pristine town to thrash out there, and a large population of the college students frequented it as well. 

Elyza gulped down the beer and tossed the bottle into the can behind her, watching the brawl that was nearing the front doors. She sighed and shook her head, _this is what you get Elyza. Punks and fights._ she thought as she climbed onto the bar. She reached her hand down as Lindsey lifted and handed her the bucket of ice water she had prepared for these situations. Elyza took the bucket and rested it on her hip, her right arm wrapped around it. With her left hand she pulled out a cigarette, lit it and smiled as she exhaled. 

"Alright you fuckin wankers! You get one fuckin step closer to my glass doors and this bucket is comin at your bloody head!" 

The majority of the crowd were regulars, and knew that when the blonde Australian climbed up on top of the bar, it was serious. They also knew that the temper that would explode from the slight girl was worse than any of theirs. With this in mind, most of the people shuffled out of the way, their heads down and their mouths shut. One of the two brawlers had thrown his hands into the air and began to back toward the bar where Elyza stood. The other stumbled after him, not quite ready to give up his fight yet. Elyza growled out one last warning before she knew she would lose her temper.

"Mate, if you don't take your pissed self outside you're going to get this bucket to the head. Then my boot up your arse." 

The man stopped and swayed as he looked up at her, one of his eyes closed and mouth slack. He then committed his greatest mistake that night. Elyza saw Lindsey stiffen at her feet in anticipation, and her bouncer Ricky shake his head at her from the door. She ignored both of them and watched as the drunkard opened his mouth.

"Ain't no English cunt gon tell me what to do. Fuck you!" 

\----------—-------------

 

Alicia sat reclined in her chair, her feet back up on the table, and a beer in her hand. She watched the blonde stranger down a beer behind the bar and sigh before climbing on top of it. Alicia dropped her feet to the floor and sat up straight, intrigued and excited to see what this small fire cracker of a girl was going to do about the increasingly rowdy bar fight. 

This was exactly what Alicia had come to Fear Grounders for. After a particularly boring day in a haze of a boring semester at Berkley, she figured the dingy bar could provide some much needed excitement in her life. In truth, the dark building reminded her of her brother Nick, whom she'd never admit to missing, but she did. With its rough and rowdy crowd, and scratchy guitars screeching though the speakers, Alicia felt oddly comfortable. She had expected to see a fight here and there, maybe a solid nosebleed near the stage, but the power house in the form of a snarky Australian girl was the last thing she had counted on. Truth be told, she was intrigued. 

So it was with that interest she watched as the girl standing atop the bar, a bucket in one hand and a cigarette in the other, growled out at the two fighting men. When Alicia saw the crowd hush and part for the girl, she became even more interested. The room full of thugs and street kids respected her, Alicia could tell. 

The fight near the door slowed as one of the men surrendered and backed toward the blonde. Alicia almost laughed when she realized he was moving toward her in hopes of being protected. The crowd held their breaths as the man who was still intent on fighting stumbled over and looked up at the girl, swaying heavily on his feet. Alicia's eyes grew bright with excitement as she saw the rage bubbling in the blonde, and her eyebrows shot up when she heard his slurred words crack out into the still air of the bar.

"Ain't no English cunt gon tell me what to do. Fuck you!" 

A comically collective gasp sucked the rest of the oxygen from the bar, and tension rolled through the crowd, crackling in uncertainty. The band on the stage was frozen, their instruments silent. Alicia lifted her feet to her chair, and stood above the crowd, now beyond the point of interested and hurtling dangerously close to invested. She wasn't intimately familiar with the customs of Aussies, but she was pretty sure that mistaking one for a Brit was not something that would go over well. 

Her suspicions were confirmed when the girl on the bar, who was shaking visibly, froze all at once. Alicia wasn't sure but she thought she saw the girls eye twitch, and heard the cracking of her teeth grinding together. _Oh God this is gonna be great_

Alicia heard the bartender mutter as she softly touched the girls ankle, "Elyza..."  
She didn't get out more than that because the explosion of the girl, Elyza apparently, erupted. The bucket of ice water was dumped over the man's head, then the bucket itself quickly followed after. The yelling began when she dropped from the bar. 

"FUCKIN ENGLISH CUNT?! OI FUCKIN ENGLISH YOU WANKER?!" The punches started before the man even knew what was going on, and shouts from Elyza slipped out between them. He was splayed out on his back with the fury above him, spewing what sounded like nonsensical slurs to Alicia. 

"You bloody tosser! You reckon you can come in to MY BAR, act like a heehawing jackass, and then CALL ME ENGLISH?! YOU FUCKING CUNT ILL KILL YOU!" 

Alicia had begun to believe that the girl really would kill him, until a large dark skinned man pushed his way to her from the door and threw her kicking and screaming over his shoulder. He pushed open a door behind the bar, with the girl shouting and cursing all the way out. When she could no longer be heard, the band on the stage ripped into a new song. Another large man, this one bigger than the other and bearded, came in and lifted up the unconscious idiot from the floor. He unceremoniously tossed him outside for someone else to deal with. Within a matter of minutes, the bar was back to normal, and the patrons were starting to glance up at Alicia still standing on her chair.

She smiled sheepishly and sat back down, her adrenaline still pumping blood hard in her ears. She watched the back door of the bar, hoping to see the girl, Elyza, she reminded herself. After a few minutes had passed and she hadn't reappeared, Alicia decided to go to the bar and find out for herself just who this girl was. She pushed and elbowed her way to the front, until she was leaned up against the dark wood bar top. She watched as the bartender moved from guest to guest, slightly limping. The girl was about her height, if not an inch or two shorter. She had her dark brown hair in a tight ponytail, which cascaded over her light brown skin covered by a tight black tank top with the words "Obey Heda" across the front.

The girl behind the bar looked at her expectantly, but Alicia only stood there dumbfounded. 

"You gonna order something gorgeous, or did you come up here to stare at me? I wouldn't blame you if it's the latter." The bartender said with a smirk.

Alicia shook her head and frowned, "No sorry, I'll take an 805." 

The bartender smiled, "Ah good taste! 805 coming right up!" She knelt below the bar and pulled the dark bottle of beer out, popped the cap and slid it to Alicia's hands. When she pulled her cash out to pay, the bartender held up her hand in refusal.  
"Nope, that one's on the house gorgeous. Actually they all are, I think my boss likes you. Names Lindsey by the way." 

Alicia's mind raced as she tried to keep up with the girls words. "Your name is Lindsey, or you boss's name is Lindsey?" 

The girl laughed and shook her head, "Ah yes, college. Fry your brain cells in class to come get drunk at the worlds worst bar and fry the rest of them here. My name is Lindsey, my boss's name is Elyza. She's the UFC champ that got hauled away a few minutes ago, in case you missed that too." 

Alicia nodded, then frowned and shook her head. "I saw that. Everyone recovered pretty quick, does it happen a lot?" 

Lindsey moved to another customer, but continued talking to Alicia, tilting her head so she could hear her. "Only about every other night gorgeous. If you walk around the bar when it's more empty you can see the trophies my fearless leader has accumulated. Why? You interested in bad girls?" 

Alicia shook her head no initially, but stopped herself quickly. She tilted her head slightly, and frowned again, pondering the question. Before she had a chance to answer, Lindsey passed her and said, "It's okay kid, college is confusing. Let me know when you figure it out." She smirked devilishly and moved to the other end of the bar, leaving Alicia open mouthed and confused. 

Alicia finished her beer, still subconsciously hoping for Elyza to come back out into the bar. When the bottle was empty, she resigned with a sigh. The bar was still packed when she slipped out the front door into the cool night air. Her entire walk home she thought about the question Lindsey and brought up.

She couldn't lie and say Elyza wasn't attractive. The blonde was skinny, but obviously strong. She was a bit shorter than Alicia, but the aura of power that easily rolled off of her was certainly attractive. The tight ripped jeans and her white t-shirt with a pack of smokes rolled in the sleeve. And her eyes. Her eyes were the bluest thing Alicia had ever seen. She felt her face growing hot at the thought of the girl, and tried not to laugh. She wasn't in to girls....or was she? Matt had been the only person she'd ever dated, but that relationship ended quickly after she moved to Berkley. 

She loved him, that much was true, but he just wasn't enough for her. She felt horrible thinking that, but the truth was the truth. He had stayed in LA while she moved up to Berkley for school. He went to a community college, but he had plans to join the Army. Alicia loved California, and knew that being with a military member meant giving up the comfort of home field. So she called the relationship soon after. Matt was heartbroken and upset, rightfully so, but he understood. 

Since then, Alicia hadn't been with anyone. Not because she couldn't, but because she truly hadn't been interested in another person. Until today. The two minutes of conversation with Elyza had drawn her in, as rude as the girl was. But then the brawl, and the fury that roiled from her small frame had really hooked her. She laughed quietly to herself at the thought, maybe she was interested in bad girls.

\-----------------------------

"One of these days you might actually let me be a bouncer for your customers, instead of picking you up all the time." Ricky said laughing as he tossed Elyza onto the couch in the back office. She bounced once, then let herself settle into the worn plaid cushions, making herself comfortable. This was their routine, and she was content with it.

"Yeah but then who would I rage on? Plus," Elyza said, sarcastically batting her eyelashes, "I just really love being thrown over your shoulder you delicious hunk of love." 

Ricky laughed and rolled his eyes, he was used to his friends antics by now. He poured half a cup of Jack Daniels into a glass with ice and handed it to Elyza before plopping down at her desk. "So who's the girl?"

Elyza took a gulp of the drink, wincing a bit at the straight whiskey. "What girl?" She asked, feigning ignorance. 

Ricky sighed and kicked his feet up onto her desk, knowing full well how much she loathed it. She narrowed her eyes at him, but he only raised his eyebrows, mocking her. She leapt up off the couch and tried to push his feet off. He leaned all of his weight into his shoes, until Elyza huffed and gave in.

"Okay okay! I actually didn't get her name." Elyza shoved her hands into her pockets and scuffed her boot on the floor. A booming laugh escaped Ricky, but he slipped his feet off the desk.

"You mean to tell me, that you ogled this girl all night, allowed her to keep her feet on the table and paid her tab, but you didn't get her name?!"

"Well Ricky, I was too busy kicking the piss out of that tosser to really remember. Plus now I'm trapped back here with you and she's probably left." Elyza replied.

Ricky rolled his eyes at her again, and stood from the chair. He moved toward the door and cracked it open, scanning the bar for the mystery Juliet. 

"We could always ask Linds to catch her name." He suggested.

"Wha and have her pick her up?! No thank you, now let me out my people need me." Elyza said as she struggled to squeeze through the crack in the door. She pressed her back against it and pushed with all her might, but just as she was about to give up Ricky let go of the door with a wicked smile. Elyza slammed back with the door into the wall with a soft groan. The bar hushed again, but Elyza turned to them, spit on the concrete floor and raised her fist in the air. The people went wild, cheering and clapping and stomping. The reaction fueled Elyza's ego, so she set a triumphant smirk on her face and slipped into the crowd. She would worry about the mystery princess later, now, she was going to get lit up with her people.


	2. Strike Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is such trash guys. But for some reason my gay ass is writing again so there’s that. I worked a 12 today, drank a bottle of wine and wrote this so you can blame Carlos Rossi if this chapter sucks.

The day droned on in a fashion that was only possible when you were halfway through your sophomore year of studying environmental law. Alicia loved the idea, but in practice the study was unbelievably boring. She hadnt expected glitz and glamour, but the endless days filled with endless lectures and bottomless coffees were beginning to drain her. She’d moved from numb to catatonic and was hurtling toward not existing at all.

It had been a month since she had walked home from Fear Grounders with a small spark in her gut, and the heat had long since dissipated. In stark contrast to the banal way she felt, the winter was rapidly seceding into warmer months. Finals were looming, and the decision on where she would go for the summer was festering behind them. Home was always a choice of course, but the empty house filled with her mother’s worry for her brother seemed even worse than the picket fences of Berkeley.

“Helloooo, earth to Alicia Clark, paging Ms. Clark!”

Alicia felt her head dip, and she jerked up eyes wide, her heart pounding in surprise. She felt an elbow dig into her ribs and winced at her attacker. Her friend Andrea was staring at her with wide, anxious eyes, and it wasnt until she looked away that Alicia finally gained her sense of awareness. She quickly snapped her head to the professor, who luckily had not noticed her mid lecture daydream. One of the benefits of sitting in the middle of the sea of students in her class.

Andrea’s high pitched voice murmured next to her, “Well good morning sleeping beauty, welcome back to earth.”

Alicia huffed, blowing her hair into her eyes and shook her head. “I wasnt sleeping,” she whispered back, “I was...”

“On another planet. Yeah, I noticed.” Andrea interrupted with a smirk. “I need you conscious, because I need your notes, so lets keep it together hon.”

Alicia smiled in spite of herself, shaking her head again and honed back in to their lecture. She resigned to dread the proverbial bridge of her near future when it came a bit closer.

The rest of her classes passed by in their usual way,(full of boredom, if you havent caught on yet) and before long Alicia found herself tying her shoes and wandering out into the night. She had no plans on where she was going, she just knew she needed to get out and do SOMETHING, before she lost her mind.

It wasnt much of a surprise to her, when she found herself standing in the glow of blue and red florescent lights, blinking “OPEN” and “Live Band” and all the assortment of beer brands a bar was known to advertise. She was absently admiring the simple “Fear Grounders” sign lit up above her, when the door came swinging open and a stumbling body was hurled into her. She caught the man by his armpits in surprise, but quickly deposited him to the sidewalk when she realized he was covered in sweat, vomit, and a small amount of blood. The commotion inside was muted when the door swung shut again, but quickly returned when another body barreled through the door.

Alicia finally decided that maybe standing in front of the door was a poor decision, and pushed her way inside. The bar was packed in every corner, the crowd like a living organism all together ebbing and flowing like some sort of violent sea weed that cursed and bled. Alicia had half a mind to just ease herself backwards out the door, but the bartender caught her eye with a giant grin.

The girl behind the bar, Lindsey, Alicia remembered, was shouting something in her direction and enthusiastically waving her over. When Alicia cocked her head in confusion and didnt move, the smile turned into an eye roll and a frown, followed by more urgent waving. Alicia raised her eyebrows in realization, and began the trek to the bartop. She had to elbow a few kidneys, duck more than one swinging arm, and squeeze between the ocean of sweaty bodies, but she made it to the bar in one piece.

Lindsey slid Alicia an 805 as soon as her hands hit the wood, and held up a finger to her as she helped another patron. Alicia sipped her beer, until a large man accidentally leaned into her back, crushing her chest into the wood. She then decided tonight may require chugging. Her bottle was empty by the time Lindsey got back to her, but luckily the bartender was an experienced one and already had another bottle waiting for her.

Lindsey leaned over the bar into Alicia’s face and yelled, “Where have you been gorgeous? We’ve missed you, and we hate one night stands!”

Unfortunately over the noise all Alicia could understand was “Gorgeous”, and “We’ve missed one night stands”. Her eyes went wide and her jaw dropped, and she threw back the second beer of the night. Lindsey raised an eyebrow and tried not to laugh. She looked side to side, as if ensuring the coast was clear before she grabbed Alicia’s jacket and tugged her. Alicia was understandably confused, and even a little bit afraid at this point. Lindsey laughed again, and if the bar wasn’t so loud Alicia would have said it was a guffaw more harsh than what should have come out of such a pretty girl.

Lindsey shook her head and motioned for Alicia to come here, Alicia shrugged, still confused but less afraid with two beers in her belly. Finally Lindsey threw her hands into the air, walked around the bar, shoving her way through the crowd to grab Alicia’s arm and drag her back behind the bar.

“Good god girl, are you slow in the head?” Lindsey asked her with a cackle at her own joke. Alicia only blinked for a moment, then smiled and shook her head. Lindsey raised her eyebrows yet again in mock disbelief, hands on her hips.

Alicia was finally recovering from the first ten minutes of madness in the bar and yelled back to Lindsey, “I was confused, I’m actually surprised you remembered me. What was that you said about one night stands?”

In a moment of cosmic irony, the band had stopped for a break and the bar quieted down just as Alicia shouted her last sentence. Most of the men at the bar side eyed her with some interest, while Lindsey made a show of laughing until she could not stand. Alicia sighed because of course, right? She gulped at the third beer she had been handed, hoping to erase the memory of her predicament. It took Lindsey several minutes to recover to a place where she could stand, and then several more before she could speak. When she finally did though, she spoke in between deep gasps and wiping her eyes.

“Ah babe. I said we dont like one night stands. Meaning it makes us sad when someone only comes to the bar once. And of course I didnt forget you, our fearless leader has been making everyone miserable over her mood due mostly to you.”

Alicia frowned, and fought the urge to cock her head again. She really wasn’t making a case for not being slow in the head. “Why has your boss made you miserable because of me?”

“That’s her business my dear, and why you’re behind the bar. I have successfully kidnapped you to barter with her foul disposition. I would like to apologize now for making you collateral.”

Alicia stifled her surprise at the bartender’s vocabulary and felt like maybe she actually was down a few notches in IQ. The only thing that made sense about her night so far was the beer in her hand, so she did what any college student would. She finished the third drink and reached for another one. Lindsey popped the cap off for her and shooed away her money, which only led to more confusion on Alicia’s end. 

She was beginning to think she had slipped down a rabbit hole into some other very strange dimension when the hulking bouncer from her last visit slid over the bar top with a grin. He reached to shake her hand, his fingers swallowing hers up. He had faded black tattoos along the sides of his bald head, and he was easily three times Alicia’s weight, but she felt oddly comfortable with him. He had kind eyes and a gentle smile. 

“I am so glad you finally came back.” He leaned down and told her. “We almost gave up hope!” 

Alicia decided that she had in fact, unknowingly fell into wonderland, and was dreaming. As she quietly pondered her bizarre dream, the bouncer turned to Lindsey to ask where Elyza was. As soon as Alicia heard the name she perked up, hoping to hear the answer as well. Since she was dreaming, she shouldn’t be embarrassed about her enthusiasm to see the blonde again. 

“I figured she’d be slung over your shoulder by now Ricky! I haven’t seen her all night, and there have been plenty of fights to pick tonight.” 

As if on queue, the crowd bulged outward to make room for a brawl close to the stage. The fight quickly travelled across the floor closer to the bar, with the onlookers growing increasingly rowdy. If Elyza was around, now would be a good time to stop this one. 

The three behind the bar waited, but she didn’t show. Instead, another hulking man Alicia saw last time cleared a path from the door to the fight. He had a glorious beard and his arms were bigger than Alicia’s entire waist. Ricky leapt over the bar top to help him dispose of the fighters and they both made their way back behind the bar.

“Have you seen Elyza, Gus?” Ricky asked after they entered the sanctuary Alicia and Lindsey had stayed in. 

Alicia noted the man giant was named Gus, and strained to hear their conversation over the noise. He shook his head and frowned, gesturing toward the back door. Ricky nodded and offered his hand to Alicia, which she took without hesitation. 

“Now she gets it.” Lindsey said as they slipped behind her toward the door to the back office. 

Ricky pushed the door open, a shout rang out above the rest of the noise, and the last thing Alicia saw was Ricky catching her as she dropped to the floor. 

———————

The first thing she felt was throbbing in her head, and a strong reluctance to open her eyes. She could feel the music rumbling beneath her, a steady thrum rattling her brain. Pieces of gravel were uncomfortably pressed into the small patch of exposed skin on her midsection, and the night air whipped around her. 

Elyza hadn’t planned to fall asleep on the roof of her bar, but that’s what studying does for you she supposed. When she opened her eyes, the stars were popping through a dark blanket of sky and she knew she had slept for longer than she should have. The bar beneath her was louder than normal, likely due to the fact that she wasn’t there. 

A wonderfully immature idea popped into her head, and she smiled as she flipped over onto her stomach. She lifted herself to crawl to the edge of the building just above the door and lay back down, leaning on her elbows. Her head popped over the edge, scouting who was on door duty. It was Gus, of course. Who better than to distract her from her thoughts and responsibilities. 

She grabbed a handful of gravel and began dropping pebbles onto his head, one at a time. His thick hair must have protected him, because even after an entire handful he still had not noticed. (Or he had, and refused to give in to Elyza’s antics.) She pushes her bottom lip out into a childish pout, frustrated her plan had failed. With a shrug she grabbed another handful of gravel, and dropped the whole thing down onto his head. She watched his shoulders heave with a sigh, before he craned his neck back to see her. He didn’t speak, but threw his arms out wide, in a universal ‘what the hell’ gesture. 

“Hello handsome.” Elyza quipped, blonde hair falling into her face as she leaned over the edge of the roof. “Just wanted to make sure you were conscious.” 

Gus dropped his arms, “You should get down here kid. We’ve been looking for you.”

Elyza huffed and let her head and arms hang limply over the building. “I have finals old man. I was trying to study.”

“Well you’re down a bartender, and there’s a lot of blood to be cleaned up.” Gus said matter of factly, and returned to his post at the door.

Elyza lifted her head and frowned, “What else is new?” 

Gus didn’t move his head, but replied, “Well it came from that pretty girl you’re so strung up about.” From the street it would appear that he was speaking to the garbage cans and lamppost, instead of his now wide eyed boss on the roof above him.

“It came from...she was here? Wait. Why is she bleeding? What?” The questions came out slow at first, as Elyza tried to piece together some kind of sense. 

Gus didn’t respond, and Elyza could feel her temper flare. Scenes of the pretty girl being sucker punched by one of the crowd began to paint a vivid picture in her mind. She grit her teeth and rose to her feet with a growl. With her fists clenched Elyza stormed to the door of the roof and kicked it in, ready to rip the heads off whoever hurt the stranger she had been trying to forget. 

If she were a more deliberate person, she may have evaluated the situation before allowing her emotions to run rampant. The girl was a stranger to her, she didn’t even know her name. Elyza had no idea why, but she felt protective of a girl she had literally only spoken a handful of words to. Had she been a calm, clear thinking individual, she would have thought this strange. But she was not, and she had no hope of controlling her anger. 

The door between the stairwell and the bar was unceremoniously kicked open, hitting a group of bystanders and shoving them backwards. Elyza charged through like a bull, nostrils flared and eyes wide. She stopped to look toward the bar, spotting Ricky floundering with a bottle opener. As if he could feel the heat of her stare, he met her eyes and briefly, relief washed over his features. Briefly. His face was quickly twisted into a mixture of fear and worry when he saw the state of Elyzas temper. 

The room was still packed, and the poor crowd was completely unaware of the ticking time bomb in their midst.

Elyza shoved her way to the rickety stage, ripped the mic from the hands of the strung out singer and threw it to the side. The rest of the band retreated as far as one could retreat on a 6 by 6 wooden platform. The crowd hushed in waves, until the message was across from back door to front. Elyza took a deep breath, and spoke clearly. The rage seethed behind the attempted calm, and it was easy to see.

“Who. The FUCK. Did it?” 

The front doors opened and several people began to inch their way outside, escaping the massacre sure to come. Ricky held his hands up to Elyza in a submissive, calming gesture. He was making his way around the bar, people were clearing the area and then she could see the blood. Ricky had done his best to clean it up, but the man was a bouncer, not a janitor. The mop was tinted orange, and dish rags were laying in brownish puddles on the floor. 

Elyza short circuited. She leapt from the stage and grabbed the closest person by their collar, practically foaming at the mouth. Luckily for everyone in the vicinity, Ricky finally reached her, and in old practice, lifted her up and threw her over his shoulder. He actually had to use quite a bit of force to keep her there this time. She was not fighting out of boredom today, no, today she was pumped full of rage and adrenaline. As he pushed open the back room door he saw Gus ushering people out of the bar. Probably for the best.

Elyza was was still seething when she hit the couch, no playful bounce or a drink this time. As soon as she was out of Ricky’s arms, she was on her feet to the door. Ricky stood fast between her and her exit, his hands raised again. 

“Elyza it’s not what you think, seriously you have got to listen to me.”

“Well just what the fuck happened?! I’m not in for ONE NIGHT. ONE NIGHT AND SHE COMES BACK AND NOW...is that her blood on my floor dude?!” Elyza was beginning to deflate, but only slightly. 

“Okay look. Some of that is definitely her blood yeah...”

“WHAT IN THE FLYING FUCK HAPPENED FUCK FACE?!” 

“Listen I’m not gonna take that personally...”

“Ricky. I swear on my own mothers grave.”

“Okay alright. So there was a fight and before you flip your lid again no one hit Alicia. Lindsey was swamped, no one cleaned up after the fight and Alicia slipped in the mess when I was trying to bring her back here to find you.” His words came out as quickly as his mouth would allow, his hands still raised and his feet shoulder length apart in anticipation. 

“Her name is Alicia?” Elyza asked, her eyes beginning to fade from feral to curious.

“What? That’s what you got..?” Ricky looked at her bewildered, “Whatever, yes her name is Alicia. She slipped on the mop water and blood, busted her head on the bar on the way down. Lindsey took her to the hospital for some stitches but she’s fine.” 

“Alicia.” Elyza said under her breath, “that’s a good name.” She realized that she sounded like a complete psychopath and lifted her eyes to Ricky. His face confirmed that she sounded like a psychopath. She cleared her throat and tried to come up with a sane thought, to convince her friend she hadn’t gone over the edge.

“Flowers.” Right. That’s a sane thought Elyza, that’ll do the trick. 

Ricky’s face didn’t change. “Did you graduate to some hard drugs tonight, or have you actually been a crazy person this whole time?” He said crossing his arms.

Elyza puffed her cheeks and blew the air out, running her hand through her hair. “Mate if you’re only just realizing I’m crazy I may have reason to doubt your judge of character. But that’s besides the point. I should bring her flowers. You know, to apologize for my cesspool of an establishment. And so she doesn’t sue me. Yeah. That’ll do it.” 

Ricky let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. Explosion averted, EOD technician Ricky successful. “That’s a good idea. I think Gus will have kicked everyone to the curb by now, let’s close up and I’ll drive you.”

Elyza nodded and followed him through the door back into the bar. The room was empty and in dire need of a GI party. She avoided taking in the wreck she’d have to help clean and headed for the door. Right as she got there, it was pulled open and she went crashing into a soft body.

“Woah there killer, take me to dinner first.” Lindsey said through a smile, brushing past them and into the empty bar. 

“I thought you were at the hospital?” Ricky asked, voicing Elyzas confusion as well.

“Oh yeah, nasty business man. She’s all good though, got her stitches and her friend came to pick her up. Figured you goons would need help cleaning up so I came back.”

Elyzas shoulders dropped. “You didn’t happen to know where they were going did you?” She asked, all hope drained from her voice.

Lindsey picked up the orange tinted mop, wringing it out and rolling her eyes. “Are you kidding me? I’m so tired of listening to you think about her so I just let her go, hopeful that serendipity would bring you two idiots back together once again.” 

Ricky and Elyza stood quiet, watching Lindsey pour chemicals into the mop bucket. She went about her business until she realized they were staring at her and stood up straight. “I got her number for you.” She said with a wicked smile, and rolled the bucket to the open floor.


End file.
